Knockdown crate



Oct. 14, 1952 B. T. Glu. ET Al.

vKNOCKDQWN CRATE Filed Oct. 20, 1948 han Patented Oct. 14, 1952 KNOCKDOW N I CRATE Bertram Themas Gill, parking, and Harold Kemp, Surbiton, England; said Gill assigner to said Kemp Application October 20, 1948, Serial No. 55,484 In Great Britain October 24, 1947 2 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements vin crates, cases and like containers for the storage and transport of bottles or other goods. More particularly it relates to containers of composite construction, in which top and bottom frames and connecting standards or uprights, made for example of metal, are provided with detachable slats or panels forming the sides and ends'of the containers, these slats or panels being made of wood or other suitable material.

' According to the present invention, the improved crate, case or like container comprises rectangular top and bottom frames which are connected together at the corners by vertical tiemembers or equivalent means associated with corner uprights each of which provides two vertical gulde-channels disposed at right-angles to each other for receiving detachable slats or panels constituting the ends and sides of the crate or the like.

In such construction each of the uprights may comprise separate outer and inner angle members held in spaced relationship so as to form between them the two vertical guide-channels. The vertical tie-members may comprise bolts or screw-threaded rods tted at one or both ends with countersunk nuts or screw-nipples and engaging with countersunk holes at the corners of the top and bottom frames, lthese holes being drilled, for' example, in the horizontal flanges of the angles forming these frames. The tie-'rods may pass vertically between the component members of the respective standards or uprights, these component members being clamped on tightening the nuts, butin some cases the tie-rods may be arranged to pass through lugs or sockets attached to or pressed out from the inner angle members of the uprights.

We may also provide means for gripping the extremities of the slats or panels in their guidechannels so as to prevent rattle or looseness due for example to shrinkage of the wood or other material of which they are composed.

In the accompanying drawings, various'embodiments of the invention are illustrated by way of non-limitative examples; in these drawings,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a crate for containing bottles, one corner being partly broken away to show the construction.

Fig. 2 shows, on a largerscale, a sectional plan of one'cornerof the crate.

Figs. 3 and 4 represent respectively the outer and the inner angle-members which together form the upright at one corner of the crate.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view, upon the vertical 2' f i plane V--V of Fig. 1, showing'the engagement of the tie-member with the top frame and upright at one corner, prior to the tightening of the tie- VReferring to Figs. l to 4, the .crate'comprises I n .a rectangular top frame a, made for example of metal angle-strips welded or otherwise secured together, a similar bottom frame b, and uprights at the four corners, each of these uprights com-v prising an outer angle-member c and an inner angle member d; the outer angle-members c engage in the corners of the top and bottom frames,

being of such length as to support the top frame i at the required height, but the inner angle-members d are of slightly shorter length. Theangle'- members c, d are spaced apart so as -to form between them vertical guide-channels epinto which `the detachable side-slats f and end-panels g are dropped; vertical tie-rods h,A connect the top and bottom frames a, b together, the tie-rods being formed with countersunk heads h1 at their lower ends and screw-threaded at theirupper ends to receive sleeve-nuts h2 also'formed'with countersunk heads h3.

The inner angle-members d are arranged to engage with the tie-rods h, for example by means of lugs or socketsd1 punched out fromthe 'materiaL as shown in Fig. 4, two o'r more-of these Sockets being provided at different levels; the top and bottom frames a., b are also arranged to engage the tie-rods or their sleeve-nuts, by means of holes formed therein, as shown at a1 in Fig. 1, each of these holes beingcountersunk to match the heads h1, h3 lof the tie-rods and nuts. The holes are so located in relation 'to the cor-ners of the frames a, b, thatwhen'the crate is -being assembled the centres ofthe holes; are slightly oiset in relation to the tie-rods h, as shown in Fig. 5; when the nuts h2 are tightened, however, the entry of their heads into the countersunk holes a1, and the corresponding` entry of the heads 4h1 into the countersunk holes in the bottom frameb, will tend `to drawY the inner angle-membersd outwards, thereby narrowing the; guide channels e and clamping the' extremitiesof the slats and panels f, y tightly against the outer angle-members c, at the same time that vslats vand panels as the frames are drawn tightly against the outer members The parts of the composite container n `age of the wood or other material of which they are composed.

The lugs or sockets d1 need not be formed externally of thev innerangle-members d but may from the angle, for example vas shown in Fig. 6;

alternatively, the sockets may be dispensed with, thetierods then fitting loosely into the re-entrants of the angle-members d until the tension is applied.

In the case of relatively light containers, where the angle-section bars used for the top and bottom frames have flanges too narrow for drilling to provide the countersunk holes for the tie-rods heads or' nuts, these `flanges may be ntted with triangular gusset plates at the corners, these gusset plates being welded or otherwise secured in place and drilled to provide the holes for the tierods. Fig. 7 villustrates this modification, the top frame a being provided with a gusset plate i extending across the corner, welded to the angle- 'strips of the frame and drilled with a countersunk hole i1 for the tie-rod nut.

Themetal angles or other sections employed for the frames and uprights may be made from steel strips or light alloy, drawn or rolled to the desired section; if'light alloy angles are used for the "frames,` their horizontal flanges may be overlapped at the corners, these parts being then drilled to produce the countersunk holes for the tie-rods. The angles used for the uprights, and particularly for the inner members, may be notched or slit at intervals to produce tongues or other projectionswhich force themselves into the the gripping action takes place. u y y Whenusing light alloy for the uprights, the

Y outer and innerangle-members may be made integral by extruding the material; Fig. 8 illustrates Vsuch an upright, the member :i having the genl eral section of an angle-bar, with each'of the perpendicular flanges forked along its edge to form the respective guide-channel el, and with the inside corner or re-entrant angle slotted longitudinally to form a vertical passage il for the tie-rod. This passage may be of part-circular section, for example representing about 300 of a circle'of a diameter to allow the vdesired clearance for the tie-rod.r4 The outside corner 7'? of the angle-bar may be square or rounded to a convvenient radius for tting into the corners of the top and bottom frames. L

Each of the forks on the edges of the ilanges may afford a gap or guide-channel e1 of parallel width, equal to the thickness of the slats or panels to be engaged therein, with its inner end e2 rounded to a semi-circle or other shape so as to stiffen the sides or arms of the fork. Alternatively, as shown in Fig. 9, the gaps el` may be stepped in width to accommodate slats or panels of different thicknesses, the greatest width being adjacent to the extremities of the fork arms and the -least width being at e3 between the outer arm andthe first step of the series; this narrow portion e3 of the gap willpenetrate further from the extreme edge than the wider portions, so that sufcient material for strength will subsist be-l tween the vertical passage :i1V and the adjacent stepped portions of the gap.

y be formed by punching the material inwardly s The containers may be provided with carrying handles and with lids; for example, as shown in Fig. 1, a carrying handle k of angle or channel section may extend transversely across the top frame a, the extremities k1 of the handle being welded to that frame and connected to two metal straps k2 passing down the oppbsite sides of the container, their lower ends ICS'being cranked inwards to engage with the bottom frame b. The containers will also be provided with slats or other filling pieces, resting upon the flanges of the bottom frame b, to support the goods therein, and they may be furnished with the usual nested partitions or separators when employed for the storage and transport of bottles.

The improved containers are readily nested for I transport before assembly, the top and bottom frames a, b being packed flat upon one another, and the uprights c, d being bundled together in sets for stowage, while the slats and panels f, g may also be stowed in the same vpackage or` provided at the point of assembly from-local sources of supply.

yWe claim:

1. In a crate, upper and lowerrigid endless rectangular quadrilateral opposed metal frames, the upper frame beinga single unit frame of inverted angle section bar and the lower frame being a single unit frame of right-angle section bar, `both of said frames having the horizontal limbs of theirangle sections directed inwardly to define the planes of the top and bottom ofthe crate, angle section .vertical corner members nestedat their ends in the corners of the two frames and abutting against said yhorizontal limbs, vertical wall panels having their vertical bars with flat sides spaced inwardly from said corner members and presenting to said corner members two Vsides parallel with the inner faces of said corner members and thereby forming vertical pockets or channels extended the full vertical distance of said cornerl members and said barsto receive the vertical side edges of the vertical wall panels, said horizontal limbs having-holes at the corner parts of the frames, screw threaded anchorage'members passed vertically through said holes toretain saidangle section corner members and said frames assembled, and'guides integral withV said vertical bars to receive -V said anchorage members to retain said vertical bars'in position.

2. A crate according to claim 1 vwherein said inwardly spaced vertical-bars are rectangular angle section Vbars and said guides for said screw threaded anchorage members are relatively deformed parts of said vertical bars. e y

Y BERTRAM THOMAS GILL.

HAROLD KEMP.

g RErERENcs-sf CITED Y The following references;` are of record -in the iile of this patent:.

UNITED STATESTPATENTS 

